The NWMO 2020 annual report celebrates progress and resilience

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) continued throughout 2020 to make progress on Canada's plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel despite the challenges posed by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Our 2020 annual report – Guided by science. Grounded in knowledge. Committed to partnership. – was submitted on March 25, 2021, to Canada's Natural Resources Minister Seamus O'Regan, in conformance with the Nuclear Fuel Waste Act.

The report outlines how the NWMO pulled together to keep Canada's plan on track and support the communities with which we work during this challenging period. It summarizes the NWMO's activities throughout 2020 and provides an audited update on the organization's finances.

"In our annual report, we outline how the NWMO has maintained strong momentum despite the challenges posed by the pandemic," said NWMO President and CEO Laurie Swami. "Throughout 2020, we remained focused on moving towards partnership with municipal and Indigenous communities in our two remaining potential siting areas."

The NWMO is committed to including Indigenous perspectives in all our work, and in 2020, we maintained our commitment to incorporating Indigenous Knowledge. We also continued to implement our Reconciliation Policy. For example, we continued our ongoing commitment that all staff receive cultural awareness and Reconciliation training. Moreover, with so many kids at home from school last spring, we held one online training session to which families of NWMO staff were invited to join.

We made significant strides in our technical work, began the engagement process for the eventual transportation of used nuclear fuel, and started the process of co-designing our environmental baseline monitoring program. We also made significant progress in developing and drafting safety case studies for the two potential sites that remain in the site selection process. Furthermore, we began preparations to ensure we are ready to resume borehole drilling in Ignace later this spring and begin it in South Bruce that same season.